Funded by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the University of California Irvine Center for Evidence-Based Corrections (the Center) is an independent criminal justice research facility that helps policymakers create solutions to crime that are based on scientific evidence and rigorous analysis rather than opinion or ideology. Evidence-based policy is an approach that helps people make well-informed decisions by gathering, critically appraising and utilizing high-quality research evidence to inform policy and practice. Specifically, the Center: reviews and evaluates current programs and interventions to determine if they are effective and efficient; initiates and executes empirical research that addresses state policy priorities; assists the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation in implementing and evaluating promising evidence-based programs; and disseminates its findings to corrections officials and to the public at large. The Center’s goals are to ensure that decisions are based on sound information; that institutions are safer and crime post-release is reduced; and that policy decisions are driven by the best possible outcomes for the crime control dollar.